Thank you, Mr. Armentano, for making my point

Friday

Apr 25, 2014 at 2:00 AM

In a letter to the editor on April 22, Paul Armentano, deputy director, National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws (NORML), Washington, D.C. made my point for me about the marijuana legalization movement. Yes that is correct, the address is Washington, D.C. and not Portsmouth, Manchester, Nashua, Conway, or Concord.

To the Editor:

In a letter to the editor on April 22, Paul Armentano, deputy director, National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws (NORML), Washington, D.C. made my point for me about the marijuana legalization movement. Yes that is correct, the address is Washington, D.C. and not Portsmouth, Manchester, Nashua, Conway, or Concord.

My point was that outside interests are behind the push to legalize marijuana across the country. Outside groups pick states like Colorado and New Hampshire because of our Libertarian leanings. That is we cherish independent thought, self-reliance, and a minimal involvement by government in our personal decisions. But sometimes we have to put aside those instincts and truly weigh the facts before we make such a societal changing decision. As I said in my opinion piece and on the House floor, "why move forward with marijuana legalization before the experiments that are Colorado and Washington states have given us the empirical data we need to make a rationale decision on this issue."

As it turned out 57.8 percent of New Hampshire House members agreed with this position in a very bipartisan way. That is New Hampshire representatives were the ones voting after a very respectful debate on the House floor and not members from outside interest groups voting from places like Washington, D.C. I am sorry that Mr. Armentano is disappointed in the vote outcome, but I represent those in Stratham, and all those from N.H., who have sent me to Concord to weigh the evidence and make what I feel are the most informed decisions possible.

Please note that Mr. Armentano did not refute that big tobacco companies are indeed securing marijuana Internet domain names. These companies know if groups like his are successful that there are significant profits to be made. NORML has every right to do what it does and I am sure they have respect for the legislative process in individual states.

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